Oils, Vinegars, Et Al:

THE LOW-DOWN ON OILS, VINEGARS, ET AL

Below is a discussion of all the items listed in Oils, Vinegars, et al. Of course, keep in mind that you'll need to always use or rotate through your stuff, even dry goods. The best general guidance is that most anything other than canned goods shouldn't be used past 6 months, its expiration date, or in the case of a twinkie, 11 years. Canned goods, under most conditions, will be fine for a year.

Oils, vinegars, et al

1. Olive oil. Happens to be good for you too. Extra virgin when you want the flavor, Light when you don't.
2. Vegetable, canola, or grapeseed oil. Good all-purpose oils.
3. Lemon oil. Man, this stuff adds flavor! Boyajian makes the best. And no, I don't have any freakin clue how to pronounce it.
4. Toasted sesame oil. For marinades, making rice, etc.
5. Truffle oil, black and white. If you pick only one, get the black for its heavier flavor. Great for sauces, rubbing meat(ha ha, very funny) and a topping for salads.
6. Balsamic vinegar. Buy a decent, but inexpensive, kind for reductions and then a very good quality one for salads.
7. White vinegar. General cooking, but mostly I use this to add to left over wine to start a high quality wine vinegar. Incidentally, vinegar comes from "vin-aigre", which is French for "your forgot to cork the wine, dumb-ass." Ok, really it means, "wine, with air"
8. Cognac and rum. For making desserts and general-purpose liver damage.
9. Soy Sauce. Great for marinades.
10. Gravy master. Same as Soy, but also as a last minute baste before beef goes on the grill or in the pan.
11. Liquid smoke. Short cut for a great smoke flavor. Someone told me that this may cause cancer, but if you were scared of a little cancer, you probably wouldn't be eating a huge slab o' beef in the first place. Next.
12. Dry Marsala wine. For making Veal Marsala or adding to a marinade or sauce.
13. Sweet Marsala wine. For dessert making, especially saboyan.
14. Dry sherry. For marinades and sauces.